Homeschooling As Discipleship

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For our family homeschooling was more of a calling than a decision. I didn’t sit down to consider the pros and cons of homeschooling and then choose to homeschool. I wasn’t trying to decide which option best fit our family.

My husband’s career is in public education. The school district in our area is great. I know and love many of the teachers at our local schools. I was perfectly fine with sending our children to our local school, until, through a course of events, I felt strongly that God was calling me to homeschool them. I didn’t understand it. You can read more about our decision to give homeschooling a chance in my last blog post and podcast, Following God’s Call to Homeschool.

I believe God put homeschooling on my heart. I believe it was part of the calling God had for our family, just like I believe public school is part of the calling He has for other families. The important thing is to be sensitive to the Holy Spirit and led by the Lord.

When I answered that call to homeschool, I knew my assignment wasn’t merely to prepare my children academically. My ultimate goal was to disciple my children in their faith. Homeschooling was the method I would use.

My greatest desire was (and still is) to raise my children to know and love God. I believe God has given me these children to raise for Him. I believe my most important assignment as a mom is to help them to know and love Him.

The soil of our homes is where God plants his tiny shoots. The nurturing atmosphere of our homes is fundamental to the healthy growth of our children. Families were created to provide the stability, love and support little ones need to grow into the people they were created to be. Our jobs as moms are vitally important in the Kingdom.

As parents we’re called to bring our children with us on the path of life. As we follow Jesus, they are following us. We must take them by the hand and gently lead them as we go. Nothing is quite as humbling as realizing just how unprepared and untrained we are to do this. But there’s always enough grace. And a calling of this magnitude can only be accomplished by grace. No human effort will ever be sufficient for the task because it’s a spiritual task. If we are to accomplish it, we must lean on the Holy Spirit for strength and wisdom.

As parents we are given a brief window of time in which we have access to the hearts and minds of our children. We must be intentional in our assignment to nurture their faith because our time to do so is limited and precious. Being sensitive to the Holy Spirit helps us not miss important moments where we can speak into their lives and help point them to Jesus.

My number one goal in homeschooling was discipleship. You can disciple your children without homeschooling. But I found the homeschooling lifestyle to be a wonderful tool for discipleship.

Discipleship is not indoctrination. Discipleship is the transfer of a way of life. It’s moving someone from the peripheral of knowing about Jesus to bringing them into a real relationship with Him. It’s teaching them how to live the Christian life.

I can’t tell you I know exactly how this works or exactly how to do this. I just know that as I’ve committed to disciple my children for Christ, God has given me the grace to do so. It is a walk of faith for all of us.

Below are a few of the ways I committed to disciple my children for Christ:

Teach them the Bible.

Teach them the basics of the Christian faith, what we believe and why we believe it.

Teach them what God expects of us and requires of us and train them in those ways. (This includes things like being obedient, forgiving others, being diligent in our work, being generous, being content with what we have and treating others with respect.)

Strengthen their faith by sharing stories of men and women who have acted courageously and served God faithfully through difficult times.

Give them a sense of destiny and purpose to live a life dedicated to God and His purposes.

Present the truth of the gospel to them with all the love and warmth that only a mama can bring, making it as attractive as possible. The gospel isn’t supposed to be cold and distant but close and comforting.

To show them that there’s no better life than serving Jesus.

Discipleship is my goal. Homeschooling was my method.

Discipleship takes time and proximity. Homeschooling provides both.

To truly disciple someone you must spend lots of quality time together. You can’t disciple someone from afar. You can’t disciple someone without spending a significant amount of time with them.

Discipleship is more than teaching. It’s showing them the way by living the way before them. It’s more than a transfer of knowledge. It’s an impartation of your very self. This is a process. You can’t lead someone somewhere you have not walked yourself, or are not willing to go. Discipleship is not something you can do occasionally, not if it is to be effective. It’s a commitment, a giving of yourself.

What does homeschool discipleship look like?

It looks intentional. There’s a goal. There may be many goals (academics, character development, career readiness). But THE goal, the main goal, is discipleship.

It’s a daily acknowledging of the God who made us, loves us, understands us and is walking with us.

It’s learning about the world He created and, in so doing, learning about Him and getting to know Him.

It’s discovering truth so we can recognize falsehoods.

It’s learning wisdom so we can learn to love it and walk in it.

It’s learning that love is possible in this world, but forgiveness is necessary if it is to thrive.

It’s finding out about the plan of God for the world and finding our place in it. This is true for us and our children.

Homeschool discipleship is learning and growing in God together, having time to instill in our children the things we believe are most important so they can take root and grow stronger even when our children are no longer growing in your home, but in the world. It’s helping your children lay a foundation that will serve them well for the rest of their life.

It’s hard work. It’s demanding work. But no work is more satisfying or important.

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